Review: Surely even he has lost count of how many tunes he has sung on now, yet still Robert Owens remains the most in-demand vocalist in the game. His smoky tones feature on Nat Wendall's 'Easy' and they come with a brighter tone than usual next to the nice piano chords which are draped over upright beats. As well as an instrumental, Kaidi Tatham remixes with his brilliant broken beat style and sunny synth disposition, and he also adds his own spin to the instrumental. A timeless package.
Review: The effervescent Robert Owens, a man whose vocals have blessed countless killer house records since the second half of the 1980s, remains as committed to his craft as ever - as a slew of recent appearances on excellent new releases proves. Here he's the featured guest on Depth of My Soul founder Nat Wendell's debut release on German imprint Eclipser Chaser. In its' original form, 'Easy' is a deliciously warm, loose and soulful house jam of the kind that the late, great Phil Asher used to serve up under the Restless Soul alias. Naturally, Owens as it his effortlessly slick and soulful best. Wendell offers up an instrumental, before West London stalwart Kaidi Tatham re-frames the track as a shuffling, samba-soaked slab of broken beat/jazz-funk fusion.
Review: Smoove-as-ya-like, sashaying night moves from the ever-prolific Boo Williams on his own imprint 'Boo Moonman'. The OG cut is an understated, proggy house tesseract with undulating 303s and propulsive tambourine action, and the dub on the flip is a weightless, pared-back bop allowing each constituent layer its time in the limelight, from warm washes of pensive pad to cavernous congas. File under rollers!
Review: He might be a veteran by now, but Chicago's Boo Williams can still kick out jams like few other artists in the house game. His distinctive style is both physical and emotive, with punchy low ends but magnificent melodies both leaving their mark. This latest outing comes on Boo Moonman, his own concern, and opens with "The Chuck Wagon' which is indeed a cosmic crusade with draw out synth modulations and rippling chords carrying you away to the stars. A dub Down mix gives the groove more room to breathe and your mind room to wander then 'Artificial World' (feat Jamiel Patton) is a deep and more jazzy house cut.
Review: There is no other way to say it then, Boo Williams is a legend of Chicago house music. There are only a handful of names in the business who have done what Boo has in his 40 plus year involvement with the scene. His own label Boo Moonman is in the midst of releasing a series of related records, 'Can't Forget You' is the seventh in the soon to be ten set in total, Boo stretching his signature cosmic sound out into deep space across four tracks. These blend jazzy keys and floating synths all to a tribal rhythm, perfect for playing during sunsets and early morning sessions. Boo just doesn't miss. Always expect quality with Mr. Williams.
Review: Chicago originator Boo Williams has a sound that finds a perfect sweet spot between physical drums and emotive synths. He has long been turning out his sparking Windy City sounds and the quality levels never dip. This new 12" from FRL revisits his 'Midnight Express EP' which is one of his best. The title cut kicks off with punchy drums and loopy chord vamps that are topped with cosmic sustained chords and have a futuristic feel. 'Planet Earth' is an even more raw and hefty house thumper with some warped bass and twisted synth modulations and 'Blast Off' shuts down with some slamming kicks and sci-fi melodies that once again make for a perfect mix for head and heel.
Boo Williams - "Remember The Music" (Boo dub) (6:58)
Boo Williams - "Time Searching" (6:47)
James Curd - "The Perceived Theory" (5:59)
James Curd - "Grey Matters" (6:10)
Review: Aussie label Pronto looks across the world to the centre of deep house and Chicago for this new EP from mainstays Boo Williams and James Curd. Those heavily accomplished names both take one side each of this new 12" and Boo Williams is first with the hazy, soul-drenched, blissed-out melodies and shuffling drums of 'Remember The Music' (dub) then offers another bright, synth laced and meditative sound with 'Time Searching'. James Curd brings some jazzy motifs and classically included deep house smoothness on 'The Perceived Theory' then swings low with the leggy, lazy, inviting 'Grey Matters'.
Cool Water Interlude (feat Ivan Conti (Azymuth) & Lars Bartkuhn)
Review: We all know and love Ron Trent as a house music maestro, but as his elevated productions have betrayed over the years, his chops reach well beyond the simple demands of functional club stuff. In line with his more eclectic output, What Do The Stars Say To You heralds his WARM project in a frankly stunning burst of musicality that harks back to the glory days of 70s and 80s studio prowess. This is still music driven by a groove, but it's certainly not a house by numbers affair. Instead you get soaring violin solos (from Jean Luc Ponty no less), infinte threads of nimble keys work and enough downtempo, slinky grooves to buffet a yacht from the Balearics to the Florida Keys and back again. Featuring members of Azymuth, Gigi Masin and Khruangbin amongst others, this is a return to the craft of exquisite album making, as handled by a true master in his field.
Review: Over the years, Ron Trent has released some fine albums, all of which have subtly expanded on his trademark soul-flecked, percussion-rich deep house sound. On What Do The Stars Say To You, his first new full-length excursion in 11 years, the Chicago native has taken a different approach, utilising his occasional WARM alias on a stunning set that abandons dancefloor-pleasing in favour of immersive, evocative and ultra-deep blends of ambient, downtempo, jazz-funk and electronica. It's a genuinely brilliant album all told, with a string of impressive guest musicians - including Ivan Conti and Alex Malheiros of Azymuth, electric jazz pioneer Jean-Luc Ponty, psychedelic Balearic specialists Khrungbin and Italian ambient maestro Gigi Masin - all making brilliant contributions. In a word: exceptional!
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